Anatomy
by hijinx400
Summary: Lorelai reflects on her favorite parts of Luke. Oneshot vignette.


**Summary:** Lorelai reflects on her favorite parts of Luke. This is a random ,one-shot piece that has no real place in the GG timeline. I would put it late Season 5 -- after LL made up, but before the season finale. Hope you enjoy it.

Lorelai Gilmore has seen her fair share of naked men in her lifetime. More than some, much less than others, but plenty enough for her to make some qualified judgments about which parts of the male anatomy she likes to gaze at or even better, rub her hands along. _Dirty._ As much as she enjoys daydreaming about the part of a man's anatomy that prompted that "dirty" outburst -- currently Lorelai's mind is much more preoccupied with a new obsession -- a previously unnoticed and thus, underappreciated part of the male physique that she has not been able to get out of her mind ever since she started dating (and seeing naked frequently) Luke.

The back. More specifically, the area starting just north of his (incredible) ass and travelling upward to include his broad expanse of shoulders. Before Luke, she never gave a second thought to a guy's back muscles or shoulder width -- a realization that has been perplexing her ever since shortly after this obsession manifested itself. After some careful analysis of her previous beaus, she is now concluding that Luke is just built differently than the guys that she has (up until now) been attracted to. The pre-Luke's have been either tall and lanky, like Alex or that kid from business class, or what she now can only describe as being "average" in height and build. The latter classification would cover the likes of Christopher and Max. In comparison, Jason's build would have to fall into a "below average" category. She's not being shallow in this analysis -- it's just the gosh honest truth. But Luke...holy hotness, Batman! He is sitting pretty in the "way-way-WAY above average" category all by his lonesome. Which suits Lorelai just fine.

It is late and she is sitting at a table near the window while Luke rings up the few remaining customers and starts the closing process. Lorelai takes a sip from her oversized mug of coffee and is perfectly happy just watching him. It's not hard to see why his back had not really caught her attention before. That flannel hides ia lot/i beneath its multi-colored plaid patterns. And thank God for that, she thinks, because if he ever switched his daily diner duds from flannel to a t-shirt and jeans, he'd have to hire another person just to mop up the drool that the women of Stars Hollow would cover his linoleum with. Lorelai giggles briefly as an image of Kirk wearing a "Designated Drool Mopper" uniform pops into her head, but the giggle is cut short when it attracts a glare from Luke.

"What are you snickering at?"

Lorelai plasters on her best fake innocent smile and responds, "Oh, nothing...uh, you gonna be much longer?"

Luke knows that she is up to something, but he is also keenly aware that considering the time of night and their current location, he will probably either be slightly embarrassed by whatever she may be plotting in that beautiful head of hers, or be extremely satisfied. "Nah -- just have to finish wiping down the tables, then stack the chairs and get the mop out. Do a little restocking. You don't have to wait, you know, if you don't want to. I can just meet you upstairs."

After taking another drink of her favorite brew, Lorelai's face is thoughtful. "No. I'd rather wait for you. I can move to the counter, so that I'll be out of your way."

Luke abruptly stops wiping down the table he was working on and just stares at her as she moves to a stool in front of the counter. Normally, when it's time for clean up, Lorelai either pouts and whines until he caves in and goes upstairs with her, or she makes a "dirty" comment and starts to disrobe as she heads up to his apartment -- guaranteeing that Luke will finish cleaning extra fast. The absence of either of these "normal for Lorelai" scenarios playing out concerns him briefly, but then she turns and gives him a sweet smile as she leans her back against the countertop to watch him work. Luke goes back to his rag and his duties, having figured out a long time ago that there is NO predicting what Lorelai Gilmore is going to do next. That is one of the things that he loves about her the most.

As Luke returns to his duties, Lorelai returns back to her thoughts of...well, Luke's back. She watches him and starts to remember the time when she first began her fascination with his trapezius muscles, along with his deltoids, teres major and minor, latissimus dorsi and erector spinae (did she mention that she has become obsessed?). It was while dancing with him at Liz and T.J.'s wedding. Almost as shocking as the fact that Luke was a closet hoofer was how incredibly right it felt to be held in the cradle of his arms. She had been close to him, proximity-wise, on occasion before. He had hugged her and comforted her many times. She had even seen his upper torso unclothed before at the lake. But he was far away and she didn't get a good look, to be honest. But whether he had done some major working out since then or if it was because he wasn't comforting her while she was falling apart or that there wasn't another man diverting her focus -- or all of these things combined -- the night they waltzed changed everything. He held her so gently, while her hand was draped over the solid steel of his back and shoulder. He became this paradox...this walking contradiction that her curiosity was screaming to investigate further. How can someone whose body was obviously endowed with such strength be so gentle when he was holding her? Walking back to her house that night, she wanted nothing more than to be wrapped up as tightly as possible within those arms -- and it scared the shit out of her. But he was sneaky and he was confident...and he asked her out and she had agreed before she even knew what hit her. That part...yeah, that part she liked. A lot.

Then came the trial run at the Dragonfly, and with that came "the shirt" -- dark chocolate brown, collarless, non-flannel, non-plaid, long-sleeved pullover from heaven. When she first saw him in it, all she could think was...GUH! Not that that forms a complete thought, but that was the only thing that came to her mind at the time. And during dinner, he just kept looking at her in that new way -- that confident, incredibly sexy way, causing every spare thought that she was capable of to wonder what Luke would look like _without_ "the shirt"...the delicious brown shirt...or anything else for that matter. But then there was Jason again and then Luke yelling at her and then...well, then...GUH all over again.

A warm breath touches her right ear as Luke leans over from behind the counter. He whispers, "Whatever you are thinking about right at this moment that is putting that look on your face -- hold onto it for another five minutes, okay? Promise me that." He places a soft kiss just above her ear and backs away as her smile of rememberence from their first kisses grows even larger. She throws him a sideways glance and he gives her a wink before he ducks into the storeroom to restock for tomorrow.

Lorelai gets off of the stool and walks behind the counter to clean out her cup. Her thoughts return to where they left off (before she was so pleasantly interrupted). She gently bites her lower lip as the rush of memories and feelings from those kisses on the porch of the Dragonfly assault her, and she thinks about wrapping her arms around those shoulders in a true embrace for the very first time that night. She was a goner right then and there. The kissing was fantastic, out of this world, mind-blowing -- but being encompassed by those arms and getting to run her hands up and down that amazing back of his, she felt something even more amazing..._safe_.

Luke walks out of the storeroom just in time to see the lip bite combined with a couple of errant tears. He is panicked at first, but he sees that she is smiling...and the lip bite usually indicates something of the good rather than of the bad with her. He gives her a second as she puts the mug away, then he comes up beside her and lightly grasps her arm, just above the elbow. "Hey...you okay?"

Lorelai nods and brushes the tears away quickly, fearing he will get the wrong idea. "Yeah, I'm good. Just being a little sappy."

He spins her around to face him and he searches her eyes like only he can. Satisfied that she's telling the truth, he uses his other hand to grasp her chin and pulls her to him for a kiss. Keeping his eyes locked with hers, he leans back and says, "Sappy, huh? Anything I can do to make that a 'happy' instead?"

"Dirty!" They both smile. Then a much more Lorelai-like expression comes over her face -- the pouty one that Luke is powerless to resist. "You finished down here?" Luke nods, then waits for the demand that he knows she is about to make. And he knows her so well. Lorelai wraps her arms around his neck and says in a little girl voice, "Carry me?"

Luke's hands go to his hips as he groans out, "LORELAI..." He tilts his head back in a feigned attempt to look like he can refuse her, though they both know that he can't. He gives her a stern look, a last ditch effort if you will: "I am not carrying you upstairs! I have been working my ass off all day in this diner! The last thing I want to do is -- "

His rant is interrupted when her lower body presses against his lower body and he can no longer think straight, much less rant. He looks at her, the pout is still there, and he's down for the count. He gives one more exaggerated eye roll, then scoops her up -- earning a squeal of delight from this woman who has him wrapped so very tightly around her finger. Has for years, in fact. Her smile is triumphant as he heads for the curtain, and their progress is only halted briefly so that she can flick the switch to turn off the lights in the diner.

As Luke carries her up the stairs, Lorelai's heart is palpitating at a fevered pitch. Because damn, the man is not even breaking a sweat. It's like he's carrying a loaf of bread, or better yet, a bag of doughnuts up the stairs! She can't help but unclasp her hands and allow the palm of one to rub slowly back and forth across the muscles of his upper back. Luke gives her a curious glance, still wondering what has gotten into her while at the same time getting his own little rush of excitement comtemplating the possibilities. Life with Lorelai Gilmore is never boring.

Realizing that she has been caught in her act of Luke body worship, she gives him a devious little grin and opens the apartment door. He walks through the doorway still holding her, and kicks the door closed behind them. He stands there and looks at her -- waiting for some clue as to what he is in for. Feeling his intense gaze, Lorelai returns it, then leans forward slightly and whispers, "Put me down."

It's like she has flicked the Luke-switch. Every nerve ending in Luke's body springs to life with her hushed command. He slowly lowers her legs, allowing her feet to touch the ground, while never losing the blue-to-blue eye contact. He is perfectly content to await any and all further instructions. He stands up straight, hands at his sides, his eyes shimmering from the heat that has been ignited inside of him by this woman.

Lorelai stands before him. She takes in his stance, the look in his eyes...and revels in the power that he gives up to her so easily and with such little resistance. Leaning into him slightly, she keeps her voice low and sultry. "Good boy." This provokes a subtle growl for the "boy" comment, but nothing more. Her hands are busy now, unbuttoning the flannel -- desperate to touch...and her mind wanders to that first time that she first got to touch his skin.

When they had gotten back to the diner after eating at Sniffy's, the awkwardness that had defined the beginning of the evening had been replaced by two people who were completely in sync...and we ain't talking boy bands. Lorelai sat in the truck and waited for Luke to open her door, something that she had never waited for another man to do before. But when Luke did it, it wasn't chivalry...it was just Luke doing what Luke does best -- taking care of Lorelai. He offered his hand, helped her out of the truck, and their hands remained clasped as they walked into the diner that night. It was a night of many firsts, one of which was the first time Lorelai entered that diner door and didn't want coffee. At least, that wasn't what she wanted _first_. The newly confident Luke faltered just a moment inside the door, but Lorelai easily took the lead...pulling their clasped hands and Luke behind her as she headed for the curtain and up the stairs to el casa de Lucas.

Once inside his apartment, all hell broke lose. There was A LOT of pent up sexual tension and an infinite amount of desire that had been lying relatively dormant for way, way, WAY too long. In the rush to get naked and skin-to-skin in as quick a fashion as possible, Lorelai remembers one moment in particular that only plays in slow motion. It is the same moment that comes to mind each time she finds herself in a similar point in time -- the moment when Luke's shirt comes off. For most women, this moment may not seem particularly romantic or significantly important in any way. Those women may have gotten a little thrill the first time they glimpsed what lay beneath their man's shirt (depending on the man, she supposes), but then their thoughts were probably diverted to a piece of his anatomy further south. Of course, Lorelai was MORE than intrigued by what Luke's 501s locked up behind the button fly, but her first real moment of awe came when he took off his shirt that first night.

Luke was (and still is) stacked. Like a brickhouse, stacked. Lorelai was taken aback, and she fully meant the pun. In their frenzy that night, this was one moment that she held him back, literally -- placing her hands on his chest. One on each pec. And thinking about that moment now...she removes Luke's t-shirt and replicates it. Palms to skin and chest hair -- and Luke now knows _exactly_ what is on Lorelai's mind, because he is remembering that first night, too. As her hands start to move, slowly gliding over his chest, she whispers, "Pectorals..." -- and Luke shivers. What she is doing now, is what she did that night. He didn't understand it then, and he doesn't understand it now. But he vividly remembers what transpired after she finished, and he is not complaining. The memory alone is making it feel like her fingerprints are leaving scorchmarks in their wake. Her hands slide over to his shoulders as she whispers, "Deltoids" -- and Luke can't help but notice that her voice is getting raspy with desire. The assault continues, like he hoped it would, and Lorelai slowly circles around behind him so that she can continue naming the muscles of his backside now. If he had not just been in her presence for the past couple of hours, he would have sworn that she had rubbed Icy Hot on her hands before she started this mapping of his upper torso. Heat...intensely focused heat pulses through each muscle as she caresses it with her touch. By the time she finishes feeling him up (face it -- that's what she is doing) and returns to face him, Luke feels like he is in a sauna. The electricity of her touch combined with the overabundance of his desire for her is on the verge of having some rather, er...explosive consequences. But before he gets the chance to make his planned move to throw her over his shoulder and take her to his bed, she pulls a Lorelai and surprises him with her next words. "Thank you."

Luke is confused. But then again, it is Lorelai, so he is not completely shocked. He is a bit scared by the raw, naked look in her eyes though. "What? Why are you thanking me? I think I should be the one thanking YOU..."

She gives him a brief smile, but the intensity remains as she explains. "I'm not thanking you for tonight...at least, not yet anyway. I'm thanking you for that night. That first night. And for being you...for being Luke."

"Still not following you here..."

Lorelai presses her body fully against his and wraps her arms around his neck, while Luke's arms naturally wrap around her waist. "I'm thanking you first for taking such very nice care of this body of yours. And I'm thanking you for having these fantastic shoulders and these incredibly developed muscles in your back..."

"Uh...you're welcome, but I have to interject that you are being weird..."

"Shush! I'm thanking you here -- no interruptions and then maybe I will make some sense here in a moment."

"Promise?" His teasing smile gets him a soft smack on the shoulder.

"AND...I'm thanking you for being Luke that is carrying around all this muscle-y goodness because if you had been anyone but Luke that first night when we were together, I would have been petrified when you took your shirt off."

"What? Are you serious? When have you ever been scared of a naked man? And Kirk doesn't count."

"Stop interrupting! I'm trying to make sense here. What I'm saying is that...let's face it, babe -- you have got some serious muscles up here...and if you had been ANY other guy, being naked and alone with a man of your size..."

"Dirty."

"Thank you...Being naked and alone with a man of your anatomical gifts -- don't say 'dirty' again, it's just a given -- while it may not have actually frightened me maybe, it would at the very least have made me uncomfortable. You could hurt me. You are strong enough to make me do whatever you damn well wanted me to. But you are _you_, so that issue wasn't even an issue. So I am thanking you for being Luke, because otherwise I would have never felt as safe as I felt that night...or every night since then."

Luke's mind hasn't fully wrapped around what Lorelai is trying to tell him in her own crazy way, but he knows it is meant to be a huge compliment, so he takes it as one. He gives her a kiss on the nose, then tells her, "Well..whatever you said..you are most welcome. And you know...you never have to be afraid of me. I would never hurt you physically, and for the record...no other guy will ever hurt you either. Because there will BE no other guys. And for any random scumbag who even looks twice at you? Yeah, I'll kill him before he gets the chance."

Lorelai is smiling crazy big now and is ready to finish what she started now that she knows that he at least vaguely has an idea of why she is so thankful that he is her Luke. She unlatches her hands from around his neck and immediately removes his belt. Surprised, but loving the hell out of it, Luke again takes the back seat on this ride and just watches her go...waiting for whatever slightly insane path she is going to lead him down next. And he is not disappointed.

Undoing the top button of the button-flys, Lorelai dips her hands underneath the denim and slips them around the back until both palms are full of another part of Luke's body. The Icy Hot is back and so is Lorelai's anatomy lesson: "Gluteus maximus...," she whispers against his neck.

"Dirty!"

the end (literally)


End file.
